If
you were one of the 1,200 or so people who squeezed into the Bucktown
Center of the Arts for Venus Envy either of the past two years,
here's some good news: The celebration of women and the arts will
be expanding outdoors this year.

(Weather
permitting, of course. If the weather's bad, prepare to get
squished again.)

The
event runs from 6 to 11 p.m. at 225 East Second Street in Davenport.
Admission is free.

Venus
Envy will once again feature two stages of live entertainment and an
exhibit with more than 50 women artists, along with seven artist
demonstrations and an artists' marketplace. This year, the event
will be spread out over all four floors of Bucktown and into the
neighborhood around the arts center, as well. One of the stages will
be outdoors, and each stage has its own theme, with Hera hosting
dance and Sophia music. (Full disclosure: My wife will be performing
at Venus Envy as part of a duo and with Hersong.)

Venus
Envy Chairperson Rachael Mullins said expanding the event was "a
response to the flow of the audience in the space." She added that
she hopes to have 1,500 people at Venus Envy this year.

If
the weather doesn't cooperate, Mullins said, all activities will be
moved indoors, and "we might be back to the same tight squeeze we
had last year."

Venus
Envy originated in St. Louis in 1999 and grew to include three other
communities along the Mississippi River. But the leadership provided
by the national organization has fallen away, leaving more
responsibility for local organizers. Memphis, which has participated
in Venus Envy in the past, does not have an event this year, for
example.

"We're
seeing a lot of changes at the national level," Mullins said. Quad
Cities organizers developed their own art-exhibit catalog this year,
something the national organization had done in the past. "That's
an important artifact for the event," Mullins said.

People
who attend the Venus Envy event in the Quad Cities probably won't
notice the diminished role of the national organization. Mullins said
it created an opportunity for stronger local leadership, and "we
really ran with it."

The
role of the national organization, she said, is turning Venus Envy
from a series of local events into a regional/national attraction.
"It is the dynamic of the sister cities that can make a national
event," Mullins said.

The
local expansion of Venus Envy has created other opportunities,
Mullins said. Organizers established a property owners' committee
to coordinate the outdoor layout and activities, and that has
generated new ideas. Bucktown neighbor Paragon Commercial Interiors,
for instance, is providing its parking lot for a stage and suggested
bringing in a lighting designer for the outdoor elements of the
festival.

The
group is also expanding its reach beyond this one-night festival.
Venus Envy did a presentation for The Women's Connection and also
conducted a call for entries to design that organization's Athena
Business Women's Award.